To ask what helped you lose weight and keep it off in the long term

[Sustainablelossofweight]

I have a fair bit of weight to lose, at least 4 stone or so.

I have tried and failed to get into new eating and fitness routines more times than I can count and it has become a cycle of doom which has gone on for far too long.

I know I am an emotional eater and also that my portions are too big so these are the things I need to work on however my motivation for losing weight now is that my weight keeps creeping up and I'm worried about the future, want to stay fit and healthy for my kids / husband etc.

If you have lost a lot of weight before and kept it off, can I ask how you have done this and what you do now to stay on track? Thanks in advance! x

Repts Thank You! Your post is so helpful .I have a sore knee and need desperately to lose some weight.I have made a note of your post and bullet points! I have managed to lose about half a stone by my Cousins plan : Porridge for breakfast ,Lunch some soup /crackers/cottage cheese and a normal meal evening. I had a small fun size chocolate eve and some quavers mid morn .So plain though!

@Ansjovis I did not make any changes that I was not prepared to keep up indefinitely

Best advice on the thread IMO

I have found the best way to lose weight and (more importantly) keep it off is to eat 2000 calories a day and walk the dog.

They were the only things I knew I could keep up indefinitely, so that's all I did and that's all I do. No short cuts, no fancy eating habits. It works for me.

That first sentence was a quote from @Ansjovis post

Divorce

For me: health wake up call. I realised food was fuel, not a treat. I educated myself about nutrition. I now very rarely eat anything processed and focus on filling meals (fats, protein, veg) which satisfies me emotionally and physically. I eat A LOT at meals. I don’t snack. If I’m tired / stressed I skip a meal (I don’t usually do much IF but do skip meals sometimes as the easiest option). I don’t eat after 7pm. I also exercise and sleep. Am not skinny at all, but at top end of healthy BMI and that’s sustainable for me. Good luck x

No idea as I've been up and down, losing and gaining the same 5lbs for about 10yrs. I have an event in July, which seems to have boosted my willpower. I've lost 12lbs in 10 days so far, not sure if it's sustainable but will see how it goes.

I wake up, coffee with splash of milk (I love lattes but this is now a weekly treat only), exercise by doing 30-40mins cardio, weights. Yoga if I'm stiff that morning, 10mins tagged on.

Another 1- 2 coffees while working

If at say 1pm I'm hungry, I make a protein smoothie. Banana, protein scoop, teaspoon of proper cocoa, 1 tbsp peanut butter, 200ml oat milk. Chia if I have some.

Switch pm to herbal teas and lots of water

Evening at about 7pm dinner. Whatever I like but smaller portions and less rice, potatoes etc. If we are having rice I have half what I would normally put away and fill up one side of my plate with veg.

Herbal tea a few hours later, match tea OR if I didn't have the shake earlier and I need something, then I will have that shake at about 8 or 9.

10-15K steps a day. I will dance in front of the telly to meet the goal if need be!

Matcha tea*

18:6 is brilliant.

Not only does it put you in daily fasting but also you just reduce the amount you eat naturally because you've only got a six hour window. You eat at one and you are full. You have a snack at 4 or 5. You have dinner at 7. The amount you eat is a reduced.

If I didn't do it I would eat breakfast snack lunch snack dinner and then snack!!! Now I eat lunch snack dinner and that's it.

I do 1pm to 7:30pm (6.5 hours) as my window and within that eat what I like while trying to make healthy choices most of the time.

I'm really hungry in the morning as I'm up at 6.30 and it's a long wait till 1pm. But I have a cup of tea then a cup of coffee. Then at 1pm I really really enjoy my lunch!

Food is my love in so many ways - it represents comfort, it is my friend, it lifts me when I'm bored, it has always been my parent, from a young child! As my parents are distant and emotionally distant parents so it has been there for me since I was young... Food stops me feeling lonely sometimes, you get the gist. It helps me recover from asthma related illnesses... So I know that the emotional connection really needs to be broken.

This sounds so familiar to me OP.

I'm obese but have lost 3 stone over the last year and I find intermittent fasting is the best way for me. I tend to go between 16:8, one meal a day and alternate-day fasting, whichever fits in with what's going on at the time.

It's easier for me to say no to food completely than having a small amount. I treat my issues with food as an addiction, so the less I'm having to think about it, the better I do with keeping it under control.
I find if I calorie count, I'm thinking about food all the time, whereas if I know I can't eat until a certain time, I can more easily put it out of my mind.
Don't get me wrong, it's still hard but I still find it easier than anything else I've tried (and I've tried a lot).

BTW for takeaways and trying not to give in, I've found I don't even enjoy them that much anyway when I do have them, it's pure laziness and can't-be-arsedness that means I ever get them. As soon as the urge hits I decide it's a quick dinner day, so we'll have crackers and cheese/sandwiches/beans on toast/eggs/a ready meal - literally anything that's ready in 10 mins or less.
As soon as I'm not hungry anymore the longing for a takeaway goes away (plus I feel all virtuous when I don't waste the money on them).

@GoldenFarfalle - UPF is ultra processed food. Food that may look like food but is actually garbage, because instead of nutrients it contains sugar, salt, bad fats, colourings and lots of E numbers and other stuff you may never have heard of.

https://www.heartandstroke.ca/articles/what-is-ultra-processed-food

Wow - so many responses thanks so much! I am going to go through each response and take inspiration from you all!

Luckily / unluckily the pain in my calves and feet / ankles from the extra weight is really spurring me into action.

I really like the idea of disassociating food from reward, because reward is such a trigger for me and food is comfort.

So I need to start connecting with the healthier me inside, eat smaller vegetarian meals, lots of water, kick start the walking again and make a decision to give my body what it needs (it doesnt need junk food and to be fed to excess). I want to do this without any shame for the food habits I've had and returned to. I want to free myself up from the addiction and the cycle. I want to decide that I am enough, my body is enough, healthy eating is enough and live is not about eating to excess!! It will be like an alcoholic removing alcohol from the equation, I think.

Tuesday is d-day... so I can stock up on veggies etc from the supermarket tomorrow. But it won't be a quick fix, I know this has to be a permanent change.

MFP helped me lose 2 stone, I've now switched in IF (currently 17:7). MFP helped me reset what a proper portion was and generally eat better. IF is letting me enjoy food more because I'd stuck at round about the same weight for several months on MFP. So far I've lost 9 pounds in 7 weeks. I'm in my 50s and I think you have to accept at this age you need long term changes not quick fixes and you need to be more active.

I agree with PPs that tackling that emotional connection to food is so important. It's something I struggle with a lot but I'm trying to get better and also set a good example for my DS - food is not a reward or a crutch but it's just something to be enjoyed.

After years of crazy yo yo dieting, I'm trying to focus on health rather than BMI (which is hard) and adding things that make me feel good into my diet/lifestyle rather than going all out with restriction (which will inevitably lead to a binge). So, for example, last night we had turkey burgers for dinner. Rather than having a pile of cheese + mayo + ketchup on mine, I made a spicy Korean sauce and then topped my burger with a big handful of kimchi. I've read a lot about gut health and it seems to be so key to overall health so that's my priority really. Likewise, I'm trying to add strength training to my WFH days because it's so important for women as they get older.

In answer to the question about takeaways, we got an Indian takeaway this week. Before it arrived, I filled my plate with salad and then had a bit less than I would usually have of everything else.

@mynameiscalypso great idea about the salad before the takeaway, I don't think I will give up takeaways completely but maybe it can be a first of the month treat and I can have something smaller.

I don't want the eating habits to be so extreme and so different that I don't keep to them or feel as though I am depriving myself. But I do need to change the overall picture.

It would be lovely to be at a place where I can feel comfortable having my photo taken by someone else so we can have some nice pictures of me and the kids. I can do a selfie at the right angle but I do look overweight in normal photos. That is a big motivation for me as there are hardly any photos of me and the kids so far...

Do not deprive your kids of photos of you.

What's the bigger deal? Your embarrassment or their joy when they are older and you are dead of seeing you and them together at a perfect moment. Get snapping.

Also, it looks like D DAY tuesday, with your massive pile of vegetables, new vegetarian diet, long walk, where you're desperate for a wee because of all the extra water you have decided to consume, is going to be an overwhelming day.

If you can't start your sustainable weight loss programme this very moment, then it is too big a change for you to sustain.

@CinnamonJellyBeans thanks for the contribution!

You could start tonight OP! Make yourself a veg soup and have that for dinner. Any veg you have in will do, and if you've none, then the corner shop will probably have some. Tinned or frozen is fine. Tomorrow morning you'll feel less bloated than you would after a normal tea and snacking. Feeling even a little bit less heavy in your digestion and knowing you've had a vitamin boost might spur you on to have another day of taking care of yourself tomorrow.

I have some vegetable soup I will start tonight! Thanks guys

Oh yes, SOUPS !!!

Soups are a great way to eat healthily and get 9 portions of vegetables a day. Almost any vegetables can be turned into soups. Add a potato for extra body, or sour cream or a bit of cheese, or lentils. And fresh herbs or ginger or lemon juice etc for extra flavor. Make a big pot and freeze it in portions so you always have a healthy and delicious ready meal to hand.

I also make a pint of different salad dressings at a time and store them in repurposed ketchup bottles in the fridge, so making salads is easy-peasy.

So many useful recipes online, include YouTube. Check out Curries with Bumbi if you are addicted to Indian takeaways (though I'd suggest going easy on oil and leaving out ghee...)

Between Monday morning & Friday evening I eat very sensibly. No cakes / biscuits/ chocolate/ desserts/ crisps / alcohol etc etc. Very limited carbs. Loads of lean protein, fruit, salad & veggies.
From Friday night to Sunday night, and when I’m on holiday, I eat & drink whatever I want, and as much of it as I want.
Works for me.

Make small changes:

1. Drink more (ideally water or fruit tea) this leave less room for food
2. Eat normal meals but make sure at least half your plate is vegetables and have smaller servings of the higher calorie parts
3. Include regular snacks if you are likely to binge. Keep this predictable and at the same time everyday (try cheese, nuts, apple)
4. Walk more - aim to hit your 10 000 steps each day.

Once you are doing all of these then look at changing your meals for healthier alternatives and reducing the calorie content

Very true. Once all the shite/instant grab and eat stuff in the supermarkets and takeaways are out of the question, so anything you eat has to be prepared from scratch, it's a whole lot easier to plan for OH MY GOD I'M STARVING moments in advance (having ingredients readily to hand).

It's always been quicker to do most takeaway style things at home in any case - tin of chickpeas, onion, tomato, spice paste, spinach, bit of tamarind gives you a curry in twenty minutes, chop up some veg and pork, stir fry and add tamari/tablespoon of plum sauce at the end whilst the rice is cooking, steak strips, sliced peppers, onion, garlic and spices on a plate within 3 minutes, that kind of thing.

The other thing that worked was completely ignoring the latest fads. If somebody's making millions from a book, chances are it's a novel way of rephrasing 'don't consume more calories than you need in a day and try to eat more vegetables'.

This might just be me, but I don't find fruit a helpful snack. It seems to give me that low sugar dizzy hunger feeling very quickly afterwards, and I've never found it satisfying. Veg works better for me, carrot sticks or peppers. And definitely nuts. I find they keep hunger at bay for a long time because of the protein. A hard boiled egg is good too for the same reasons, or a small piece of chicken breast or fish. I'm vegan so that's a no go for me now but I remember them being very good for long lasting saiety.

My GP referred me to this. In some areas it's available as a 3-month face-to-face programme, which is what I did, but you can do it by yourself online too. It's about long-term health and looking after yourself, rather than just losing weight, so it addresses a lot of the deep-seated issues we all have rather than just telling you what to eat and how much to exercise, which, let's face it, we all know. And because they contract with health authorities, they're paid for positive, long-term results, rather than something like Weightwatchers or Slimming World, which obviously makes more money from you if you don't manage to get/keep the weight off.

I found it excellent and genuinely recommend it, even for people who think they're a hopeless case or think they know it all already and can't learn anything new from a programme. I had a vast amount of upheaval in my life right at the time I finished it and have found it hard to replicate the stable attitudes and behaviours that I learned from it, so I'm glad of this thread because it's prodded me to re-enrol on the online programme myself.

It's free, before anyone asks if I'm getting a commission, lol.